Saturday, November 12, 2005

The View From The Bow: Evaluating Superplatforms / The Google Threat

The View From The Bow: Evaluating Superplatforms / The Google Threat: "And now on to Matt's second question:
'The same trends that are propelling Google seem to be working against Microsoft. Do these same trends not affect the longer-term prospects for 'superplatforms'?'
I agree that Google is a tremendous force to be reckoned with, and Google may very well emerge as the first in the next generation of superplatform vendors. But of all the current crop of superplatform vendors, I think Microsoft is best positioned to compete with Google. Microsoft is the only superplatform vendor that has any type of focus on the consumer marketplace. And Microsoft has already proven that it has the ability to make a massive mid-course change (embracing the Internet in the late '90s). I have a lot of confidence that Microsoft will remain in the game.
As for the other superplatform vendors, I don't think they realize yet that Google is a threat to them."

Read the full post for more superplatform insights from my Burton Group colleague Anne Thomas Manes.